PRDW

What PRDW does

PRDW is an international consulting engineering group practising exclusively in port and coastal engineering, founded in 1993 in Cape Town, South Africa, and operating today with 160+ employees across seven wholly-owned offices in South Africa (Cape Town, headquarters), Chile (Santiago, regional headquarters), Australia (Perth), USA (Seattle/Bellevue), Brazil (Vitoria), Panama (Panama City), and the United Kingdom (London). The firm has delivered projects in more than 40 countries and has expanded through a deliberate sequence of cross-border mergers (Allan Wijnberg Inc. in 1997, SurOeste Ingenieros Ltda. in 1999, Aldunate y Asociados Ltda. in 2005) and organic subsidiary registrations, formalizing a four-global-director governance model in 2013 and rebranding to PRDW in 2014. The company is privately held with no external institutional investors or public listing.

The firm's service portfolio spans the full lifecycle of marine infrastructure: site investigations, feasibility studies, basic and detailed engineering design, tender documentation, construction supervision, and post-construction monitoring. Capabilities are organized around seventeen engineering service lines including breakwaters, quay walls and jetties, coastal modelling, navigation and vessel motions, seismic design, dredging and reclamation, intake/outfalls, submarine pipelines, materials handling, sand bypassing, tsunami studies, and advisory services. PRDW also owns proprietary product lines: the trademarked CUBILOK concrete armour unit for breakwaters and the AWFOS (Automated Wave Forecast System) web platform deployed for multiple port terminals, and holds exclusive distribution rights for Core-Loc concrete armour units across the USA, Canada, Mexico, and parts of Africa. The firm pioneered Core-Loc usage in 1994 and was the first globally to implement seismic isolation with hybrid technique at Puerto de Coronel, with structures surviving the 8.8 magnitude 2010 Chile earthquake without damage.

Revenue is generated through professional service fees on project engagements won via competitive tendering and direct appointments. The client base is concentrated in three primary verticals — Energy (LNG jetties, cooling water intakes), Mining and Bulk Materials (export terminals), and Port Infrastructure (container, multi-purpose, and bulk terminals) — served across governments, port authorities (Transnet, Namport, Maputo Port Development Company), energy companies (GNL Mejillones, GNL Quintero, SK Engineering), and mining operators (Alufer Mining, Kenmare). Secondary verticals include Water (desalination intakes, power sector cooling), Marinas and Waterfronts, and Marine Works and Studies. The go-to-market is enterprise field sales delivered directly by PRDW's engineering teams with no resellers or distributors, supported by an AWFOS subscription component.

Name

PRDW

Legal name

PRDW

Website

https://prdw.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1993

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

PRDW is an international consulting engineering group specializing exclusively in port and coastal engineering, serving governments, port authorities, mining firms, and energy companies across 40+ countries via seven offices in South Africa, Chile, Australia, USA, Brazil, Panama, and UK.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Santiago

HQ country

Chile

HQ region

Latin America

Offices7 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Engineering Consulting Services: PRDW provides the full range of consulting engineering services from investigations, planning and feasibility studies to basic and detailed design, tender documents, supervision of construction and post-construction monitoring. Revenue is generated through professional service fees on project engagements.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

PRDW provides the full range of consulting engineering services exclusively in port and coastal engineering, from investigations, planning, and feasibility studies through to basic and detailed design, tender documents, supervision of construction, and post-construction monitoring. The firm serves governments, port authorities, mining companies, energy companies, and private developers across 40+ countries. It also licenses its proprietary CUBILOK concrete armour unit and distributes CORE-LOC armour units, and operates the AWFOS automated wave forecast system for port operators.

Product overview

PRDW is an international consulting engineering group specializing exclusively in port and coastal engineering. The company offers a comprehensive suite of engineering services rather than a single software product. Core offerings include coastal and port planning, navigation and vessel motion studies, and various marine infrastructure design services (breakwaters, quay walls, jetties, intake/outfalls, submarine pipelines). The company has developed proprietary products including CUBILOK™ (trademarked concrete armour unit) and distributes CORE-LOC™ (concrete armour unit). They also offer AWFOS (Automated Wave Forecast System), a web-based tool for port authorities. Engineering services span advisory, design, site investigations, and construction supervision across sectors including energy, mining, marinas, port infrastructure, and water. The company operates with over 160 employees across offices in South Africa, Chile, Australia, USA, Panama, Brazil, and UK.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• CUBILOK: A trademarked armour unit developed by PRDW to accommodate a wide range of breakwater designs, including both single and double layers.
• CORE-LOC
• PRDW Automated Wave Forecast System (AWFOS)

Products and services

• CUBILOK Trademarked concrete armour unit developed by PRDW to accommodate a wide range of breakwater designs, including both single and double layers. Sold/licensed to breakwater construction projects globally.
• CORE-LOC (Distribution License) Concrete armour unit for breakwater protection distributed exclusively by PRDW in USA, Canada, Mexico and parts of Africa. PRDW pioneered use of Core-Loc armour units in 1994 with the Port St Francis breakwaters.
• AWFOS (Automated Wave Forecast System) Web-based automated wave forecast system assisting port authorities and operators manage risk and minimise port disruption through real-time wave and sea condition predictions. Available at awfos.prdw.com for multiple port terminals.
• Navigation and Vessel Motions Studies Navigation studies and vessel motions analysis using SimFlex4, DelftShip, Orcaflex, and AQWA software, including desktop and full mission ship simulation. Used to design and optimise port developments, channel widening, and mooring systems for port authorities and operators.
• Port Planning and Terminal Simulation Multi-disciplinary port planning inputs combined with ARENA simulation to develop terminal layouts. Includes demand forecasts, capacity estimates, master plan development, and financial modelling for port authorities and operators.
• Coastal Modelling Numerical and physical modelling of dynamic coastal processes using MIKE by DHI suite, covering wave modelling, sediment transport, hydrodynamics, water quality, and tsunami modelling for ports, harbours, and coastal developments.
• Breakwaters Design Design of practical and efficient breakwaters in different wave climates and foundation conditions, including rock breakwaters, concrete armour units (Core-Loc, CUBILOK), and vertical caissons. Expertise dating back to the 1970s with in-house software for 3D placement grid calculation.
• Sand Bypassing Systems Planning, design, construction and monitoring of sand bypassing systems to address coastal sediment transport disruption caused by marine structures, including dredging of accreting beaches and feeding of eroding shorelines.
• Quay Walls and Jetties Design Design and construction supervision of marine infrastructure including vertical quay walls (sheet pile and blockwork), deck on piles, jetties and wharves, with global experience across steel, concrete and timber configurations.
• Intakes and Outfalls Design Design and construction methodology for nearshore intakes and outfalls for desalination, cooling water (including nuclear), and tailings disposal applications, using HDPE pipe and steel configurations.

Quantifiable outcome

• Port entrance channel widened to accommodate 9,200 TEU container ships (Length=350m, Beam=45.6m, Draft=14.5m) at Durban Harbour
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers24 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Italian-Thai Development Corporation (ITD)minorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting Partner · 1 January 2022PRDW was appointed by SMC Consulting Engineers who were engaged by ITD as their Engineering Consultant on a design and build contract for Bangkok Port Reclamation project. PRDW provided specialist professional engineering design services and fulfilled the role of Project Manager during the design phase.
• ADSO LLCminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 1 January 2020ADSO LLC was appointed by Abu Dhabi Ports Company for design and construction of Al Fiyay Island marine facility. PRDW was appointed by ADSO for the design of the Al Fiyay Marine Facility.
• BELFI S.A.coreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting Partner · 1 January 2006BELFI S.A. is a marine contractor that has engaged PRDW for engineering services on multiple EPC projects including LNG terminals, coal terminals, and power station marine infrastructure across Chile and Peru. BELFI has commissioned PRDW for basic and detail engineering on multiple major marine works projects.
• Group Five ConstructionminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerPRDW provided detailed design services to Group Five Construction for Moma Mineral Sands Export Jetty project executed as a design and construct contract.
• CSIR (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPRDW appointed the CSIR in South Africa to carry out 2D and 3D physical model studies for port and coastal projects.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves13 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Market position

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/prdw

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Subsidiaries7 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about PRDW